The Seeds of Ministry with Migrant Farmworkers from Mexico
By The Reverend Antonio Illas The genesis of ministry with Spanish-speaking seasonal migrant farmworkers from Mexico in the Niagara region dates to Easter 1988. In January 1988, the Reverend Duncan Lyon, originally from England, became the rector of Christ Church McNab, established in 1847. After the joyous Easter service Duncan, still in his cassock, sat […]
October: Latin American Heritage Month
By The Reverend Antonio Illas I am humbled and honoured to serve in the diocesan Anti-racism Working Group and to be a proud member of the Latin American community in Canada, specifically a Latino. The creation of this working group is a serious attempt by Bishop Susan to place anti-racism, an important issue, in the […]
Grocery Bag Drop-Off & Bikes for Farmworkers initiative
By The Reverend Antonio Illas with contributions from Gillian Doucet Campbell and Canon Christyn Perkons The Migrant Farmworkers Project (MFWP) is a missional outreach ministry focused on building relationships with Spanish speaking seasonal workers in the Niagara peninsula. This ministry has been creating supportive spaces in which the liturgical, religious, spiritual and pastoral needs of the workers […]
Advocacy Oct 2020 Migrant Farm Workers
Presentation on the Issues of Migrant Farm Workers in Canada and potential Solutions Source: Sponsored by St. Luke’s Church, Burlington, Ontario
Invisible No More
Invisible no more: Migrant worker outreach moves from the church to the field Anglican Diocese of Niagara’s Migrant Farmworkers Project continues to distribute food and clothing during pandemic Antonio and Cela Illas loaded a Nissan Versa with donations of food and clothing on a recent Friday afternoon before driving to Niagara-on-the-Lake. They arrived at 5 […]
Pandemic Puts Vulnerable Food Workers in Focus
The people who come from other countries to work on Canada’s farms have never had it particularly easy—but the pandemic has added a sharp edge to the stressful conditions under which they work, says the Rev. Antonio Illas, the diocese of Niagara’s missioner to migrant farmworkers. In addition to hard […]
Migrant Farmworkers Project and COVID-19
“It was a hard decision, but the right decision,” says Rev. Antonio Illas, missioner of the Migrant Farmworkers Project located in the Niagara region. He recounts that it was, “Early in the morning of March 13 as the coronavirus was a clear threat to the health and safety of people in Canada. It was then […]
